How much do I dislike Halloween? Let me count the ways. Halloween evolved from a Celtic ritual to a Catholic holiday to what we have now. “Over time, Halloween evolved into a secular, community-based event characterized by child-friendly activities such as trick-or-treating” (History.com).
Halloween does not strike me as a “secular” holiday. It strikes me as a bit occultic. So much morbidity, violence in death, darkness, and evil create much of the emphases of Halloween. I wonder about the secularity of the theme of Halloween. As a society, we oppose evil, violence, dark behavior, and yet we embrace this holiday as a fun event. I gather that most secularists do not believe that humans are inherently evil, so why encourage and enhance evil on this day?
Yes, Halloween has become a “community-based event with child-friendly activities,” but why do we have to have Trunk or Treat if the holiday is so child-friendly? In order to keep children safe from the whack-jobs whose evil tendencies make themselves apparent on such a holiday, Trunk or Treat came into being. Nice.
What about the creepy costumes that people don to lurk about scaring the bejeebers out of kids? How is that child-friendly? Zombies with eyes rolling out of the sockets and axes in their heads, clowns with sinister faces, people coming out of caskets on their front lawns and chasing kids. That’s fun?
What about the whack-a-doos who tamper with candy? That’s kid-friendly? I know that reports went around last year, comparing the finds of tampered candy in different locations, only to discover that no real evidence existed. But why scare parents and kids alike about something so serious? Is that fun? Maybe it is fun for the depraved individuals who report such events. Notice I used the word “depraved,” not a word widely accepted by people today.
I don’t only object to the evil atmosphere associated with Halloween, but I wonder about sending kids around begging for candy. What is that about? Don’t they get enough junk at home? With all the peanut allergies, gluten and dairy issues among children today, why are we sending them to homes to get processed candy, loaded with “evil” substances such as corn syrup and transfats and whatever else our First Lady forbids us to eat.
How nice a holiday is it when a family that does not celebrate Halloween finds that their house has been egged or vandalised because they do not open the door to trick or treaters? Sounds like a fun and friendly holiday to me.
I know that some of you will call me a killjoy or a hater. I don’t care. For a holiday that Pope Gregory III ordained as a time to honor saints and martyrs, Halloween has turned into a holiday that exalts evil and occultic themes. Why aren’t kids dressing up like St. Francis of Assisi or Mother Theresa or John and Betty Stam or Dietrich Bonhoeffer? Those are “saints” and some are “martyrs.” How about dressing the kids up like remarkable characters in history, ones that made important contributions to our world like Florence Nightengale, Thomas Edison, and, hey, Nobel Prize Nominee for literature, of all things, Bob Dylan? I guess you are right. Those individuals are not fun.
I know Woody and Buzz, Frosty princesses, and other cartoon characters are exciting. I know creativity has a shot on a holiday like this, and I think there is a place for those costumes, but how do you explain the level of darkness associated with Halloween to a little girl dressed up like Pocohotas? How do you explain to Woody that the guy with the axe in his head is giving him candy because he likes Woody?
These are a few random ideas that are floating around my head while a drive through the neighborhood and see a babydoll hanging by the neck from the porch rafters, or trees full of cobwebs and a giant spider (shivering at the thought), or a yard filled with tombstones.
No, from my perspective, this is not a secular holiday nor is it kid-friendly.
Thank you for posting this, Liz. As I type, the view from my window includes a creepy, cackling witch, several mock grave sites where arms and legs appear struggling to emerge, and an evil clown hanging by its neck. I have struggled with losing the “cute” aspect of Halloween. It would be fun to dress the girls up and sport them around the neighborhood. However, Halloween is not just fun. It is characterized by evil, darkness, mayhem, murder, and grisly images of violent behavior on most doorsteps. We put a basket out with candy, tracts, and small pocket bibles every year, trying to grab the opportunity to share Christ. People do take the bibles! I don’t know what they do with them, but they are always all gone, and I have yet to find any damaged on the front lawn (a big fear the first year). My point just to say that your words encouraged me in mine and Bill’s conviction that Halloween is something we want no part in. I have struggled with it sometimes, feeling as though the girls are missing out on some integral part of childhood. Thanks for the reminder of reality.